If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

New from South Texas

I'm just starting from scratch. I'm a avid home brewer and cyclist. I'm also a amateur welder and woodworker. I started making mead and researching honey. That's about it. I built 2 TBH and 3 swarm traps. I've got a friend that owns an abandoned house with a hive located in it. This hive is at least 5 years old. I guess I'm curious if I do a cut out do I need to move all of the bees away from the area? Or can I just remove the comb and seal it off? Then hopefully the bees will stay in my new hive which I had planned to store on the same property.

Re: New from South Texas

If the move is less than a couple miles, place a leaved branch
over the entrance so the bees have to negotiate to get around
it. This will trigger them to go into "reorientation", over a couple
miles, no problem, they'll reorientate.

Re: New from South Texas

I did the cut out today. Wow what an experience. This is my first exposure to honey bees. What a thrill. I started with trying to spray them with sugar water I got bombed in the face repeatedly. I freaked out and walked away. I rested for about 30 mins while I got up my nerve. I was wearing a tyvek suit, bee keeping gloves and a mosquito net. So I felt very protected. I just wish the post office didn't lose my veil and jacket in the mail.

I smoked them and started removing siding. The hive was in between two cantilevered joists. I couldn't approach the hive from the side and the cavity was filled so I couldn't from the bottom. I needed to remove the top. Well after I attacked the siding the battery was dead on my crappy sawzall. I had to call a buddy and borrow his chain saw. So after a run into town. Boom I had the hive cracked in 2 mins. Well I had a large tote on a ladder to catch falling bees and comb which collected a lot. The rest I cut out and put into buckets.

I used hair clips and zip ties to put about 10 combs of brood nest in the hive I ended up running out of day light to properly go over all the comb. So I closed up the hive and left a lot of comb in an open tote near the hive.
Well I Jammed a large mesquite branch in the hole.

I only got stung twice. Both on the knuckles. Through the gloves when I pressed up against something.

Re: New from South Texas

Sounds like you really did a great job and had a very good experience to learn from. Try to always be partially prepared for the unexpected, like a spare battery or two that are fully charged or better yet a 12 volsawsall that you can run from your car battery or ideally an extension courd from your car battery. Dont forget things like a handsaw, hammer and nails and extra containers for bees,honey etc. Plastic sacks.extra fuel for the smoker and duct tape may be handy. I use to keep a list of things I wanted and kept it all together and ready to go immediately. Flashlights and even an extra ten pair of disposable gloves and a mosqueto net can be handy. To not feel the stings so much double the gloves if necessary. Be sure to buy a large enough size to get them on and off easily. Some may be bothered by all the sweat in them. Remember to look for the queen at least a little and be sure you don't harm her and do get her along with the other bees, If you have day old eggs and enough bees they can feed royal jelly and make a queen I believe, If lots of bees it may be a good time to try starting a new hive that way too. Once I screwed up and found a few bees in my veil, probably killed 3 or 4 then started getting stung 2-3 times and then started running like hell while wildly trying to brush bees off me and at the same time get out of my hat,veil. gloves and even coveralls. Since that time I take extra time to see that stocking are well over pants legs,suit is well zipped up and gloves are well over sleeves and if in doubt duct taped to be sure, I also make sure the veil strings are properly placed and tied tight enough, Have fun with your new learning experience

Re: New from South Texas

Thanks. My only concern is that I will be removing the hive from the house and putting them relatively in the same area but in the tbh. Also I have a package coming from rweaver apiaries.

I moved a TBH 300 hundred yardsand did the leafy branch thing and still lost all the field bees back to an adjacent hive! So I looked after the moved hive, fed it all winter and on the first of March this year they hatched off a huge number of new bees! Wow! that hive is going crazy making wax and gathering honey and pollen. So watch out for over feeding a hive, mine may swarm before I can split them.

Re: New from South Texas

Well I checked the hive today. It's dead. Looks like the ants ran off the bees. The hive was moving pretty good 2 days ago. I just drove buy and checked it. I didn't do a full inspection. They didn't even have time to try and make a new queen. I guess I need to do some oil motes on my hive legs.

Re: New from South Texas

Sorry to hear your bad luck. I guess there were just too many ants to fight. I suppose if motes hold a lot of water it would work. How about using the ant poison that when eater they take it into their neest and eventually the queen ant and others are killed?.

Re: New from South Texas

Originally Posted by samoadc

Sorry to hear your bad luck. I guess there were just too many ants to fight. I suppose if motes hold a lot of water it would work. How about using the ant poison that when eater they take it into their neest and eventually the queen ant and others are killed?.